Gold Standard News Daily

4.19.24 - Is America's Economic Standing at Risk?

Gold last traded at $2,390 an ounce. Silver at $28.67 an ounce.

EDITOR'S NOTE: The IMF is sounding the alarm that America's profligate spending and ever-growing debt is highly problematic. The financial institutions expects we will reach a new record deficit in 2025 that will be "more than triple the level in other advanced economies." That's a frightening prediction. What can you do to protect yourself? Diversify into inflation-proof assets now.

IMF sounds alarm on ballooning US national debt: 'Something will have to give' -Fox Business

by Megan Henney

The astronomical rise in the U.S. national debt poses "significant risks" to the global economy and threatens to continue fueling high inflation, according to a new warning from the International Monetary Fund.

In its latest Fiscal Monitor, the Washington-based institution said that it expects the U.S. to record a fiscal deficit of 7.1% in 2025 – more than triple the level in other advanced economies.

"Loose fiscal policy in the United States exerts upward pressure on global interest rates and the dollar," Vitor Gaspar, director of the IMF’s fiscal affairs department, told reporters. "It pushes up funding costs in the rest of the world, thereby exacerbating existing fragilities and risks."

Under current policies, public debt in the U.S. is projected to nearly double by 2053. The IMF identified "large fiscal slippages" in the U.S. in 2023, with government spending surpassing revenue by 8.8% of GDP – a 4.1% increase from the previous year, despite strong economic growth.

If this trend continues, the Congressional Budget Office anticipates the national debt will grow to an astonishing $54 trillion in the next decade. Higher interest rates are also compounding the pain of higher debt.

Should that debt materialize, it could risk America's economic standing in the world. READ MORE

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4.18.24 - Is the stock market headed for hard 'reset'?

Gold last traded at $2,380 an ounce. Silver at $28.23 an ounce.

EDITOR'S NOTE: The bulls of the stock market have been running for quite some time now, full steam ahead. Lately though, bearish signals have started to sound. Are investors listening to those signals after more than a decade of no-end-in-sight returns? Complacency may mean some hard times ahead for those not heeding the warnings.

The stock market is headed for a hard 'reset' that could take years to recover from, CIO says -Business Insider

by Jennifer Sor

Stocks have been in the midst of a long bull market, but there are signs that it's finally going to run out of steam and will inevitably be followed by a bear market and a difficult "reset," according to Chris Vermeulen,CIO of Technical Traders.

In an interview with Bloomberg, the investment chief pointed to the recent run-up in defensive assets, like precious metals, energy stocks, and industrial stocks. Those areas all typically do well in the late stage of a bull market, which is inevitably followed by a bear market or a "financial reset," Vermeulen said.

Investors are likely heading into another bear market, similar to the ones that followed the dot-com bubble and the 2008 financial crisis, he predicted. That could end up sparking painful stock losses for investors, with people seeing their wealth decline as much as 30%-50% over the next year, he warned.

"I think we're coming into a major market top, more or less a financial reset," Vermeulen said Tuesday. "It's short-term, temporarily painful. But we need markets to reset. We need regular pullbacks and corrections in order for the market to keep going up."

That reset could also come with a recession, Vermeulen said, with industrial stocks in particular signaling a slowdown for the economy. While the sector has done well in recent months, buyers of industrial goods typically upgrade their equipment at the end of an economic growth cycle, due to "huge delays" between slowing business and orders for new machinery.

"They don't realize we're coming to the end of a growth cycle, and the music is about to stop," Vermeulen said of US firms. "Industrial stocks have just continued to muscle their way higher. They're hitting all-time highs, and that is a sign that we're going to see these companies eventually start to slow down." READ MORE

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4.17.24 - Goldman Sachs Makes Gold Price Prediction

Gold last traded at $2,372 an ounce. Silver at $28.28 an ounce.

Brace for the S&P 500 to crash 30% before an even bigger collapse after the election, markets guru David Brady warns - Business Insider

For months now, domestic markets have been awash in volatility. Many of the great financial minds have been warning of an impending crash. CEOs are cashing out their positions of their own stocks en masse. Is this all just coincidence or do they see the writing on the wall?

by Theron Mohamed

Prepare for stocks to plunge 30%, rebound before the presidential election, then crash to their lowest level in 14 years, a markets analyst warned.

The S&P 500 is poised to plummet from over 5,000 points to an 18-month low of 3,500 points, David Brady said on the latest "Thoughtful Money" podcast episode .

Brady is a money manager, former foreign exchange trader, and the author of "The FIPEST Report" which analyzes metals and miners. He argued that stocks are massively overvalued , investors face much greater downside risk than potential upside, and a sell-off looks assured.

However, he predicted the Federal Reserve would step in to reverse the coming decline by cutting interest rates and growing its balance sheet — especially as the Biden administration will want a strong stock market and economy going into the November election.

However, he cautioned the rebound wouldn't last given mounting domestic and international pressure on the economy.

"My two cents is short term, 20-30% drop, but then the Fed responds as it always does and the market goes up," Brady said. "After the election, stocks are going to get hammered."

"I expect the stock market to drop because of what's going on in the economy and elsewhere in the world," he said about his anticipated post-election decline. READ MORE

BRICS: Goldman Sachs Makes Major Gold Price Prediction -Watcher.Guru

The price of gold has a lot going for it these days. With geopolitical tensions rising, the BRICS nations acquiring their own reserves and US economic policy continuing to degrade the dollar; all signs point to a banner year for the yellow metal. Goldman Sachs has joined the growing chorus of financial powerhouses calling for a major uptick this year.

by Joshua Ramos

Amid the ongoing BRICS acquisition strategy that has driven global interest, Goldman Sachs has made a major gold price prediction. Indeed, the investment bank forecasted the metal to reach a price of $2,700 in 2024 after its tremendous value increase throughout the year thus far.

The financial institution released an investment note that reevaluated Gold’s position amid its strong performance. The metal had been thriving, recently hitting another all-time high this year, surpassing $2,400 this weekend. One of the most important catalysts for the increased value of the metal has been the BRICS alliance. Indeed, the collective has influenced diversification strategies for Central Banks throughout the world.

Throughout the year, the price of gold has seen its value steadily increase. However, this extends to December of 2023, when the asset surpassed the $2,135 mark for the first time. That would set a trend for the metal, which has continued to set all-time marks throughout the year.

Now, that development has caught the attention of one of the world’s most prominent financial institutions. Specifically, amid BRICS and global interest, Goldman Sachs has made major gold price predictions. Indeed, the bank has forecasted the metal to reach a price of $2,700 by the end of the year.

In the investor note, the bank said that “none of those traditional factors adequately explain the velocity and scale of the gold price move so far this year.” Subseuqnlety, one of the biggest reasons for its increase is tied to macroeconomic concerns and the metal’s status as a haven asset. READ MORE

Silver’s Record Industrial Demand and Deficit to Underpin Prices -Yahoo! Finance

While gold has received most of the attention lately, silver is still shining brightly as a safe haven metal amid a world in turmoil. With demand up and supplies running low, silver is poised to break records of its own this year.

by Yvonne Yue Li

(Bloomberg) -- After a strong start to the year, silver should remain supported by record industrial usage and a supply deficit, according to the Silver Institute.

Industrial consumption hit an all-time high in 2023 and is expected to expand another 9% this year, driven by green-related applications such as solar panels, the institute said in its World Silver Survey report on Wednesday. That will help the metal record a fourth straight annual supply shortage.

Silver, known as the devil’s metal because of its often wild swings, is trading near a three-year high as it tracks a rally in gold that has partly been fueled by demand for a haven amid geopolitical tensions. Silver prices will be underpinned by the persistent deficit, said Philip Newman, managing director at consultancy Metals Focus, which was commissioned to produce the report.

Silver has rallied 20% already this year to trade at about $28.55 an ounce in London. Prices could hit $30 in the near term, Newman said in an interview. READ MORE

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4.16.24 - Gold is Back

Gold last traded at $2,394 an ounce. Silver at $28.31 an ounce.

EDITOR'S NOTE: There is more than meets the eye in the recent run up in gold prices. Sure, inflation plays a role; but many investors turn to gold in times of instability and turmoil. Gold may simply be offering a hedge right now, but it also may have reached a tipping point which could push it exponentially higher.

Gold is back — and it has a message for us -Financial Times

by Rana Foroohar

It’s easy to mock gold bugs, but their moment may finally have come. The precious metal has been breaking out recently amid higher than expected inflation in the US, and general anxiety over everything from geopolitics to the November presidential elections to where monetary policy and markets go from here.

All these things are predictable reasons for gold to surge. But there are deeper, longer-term messages in this rise that investors should pay very close attention to.

Let’s start with inflation. Whatever happens over the next few quarters, I’ve long thought that we were in for a period of “higher for longer” inflation. Aside from the possibility of a technology-driven productivity miracle, it’s hard to think of a macro-trend at the moment that isn’t inflationary.

The economy is running hot — from fiscal stimulus in the US to more supply chain redundancy as countries de-risk, to all the capital investment required for the clean energy transition and re-industrialisation in rich countries. Even ageing US baby boomers are likely to be an inflationary force, since they have health, time and plenty of money to spend.

Gold is historically an inflation hedge. But it’s also something investors turn to when they are worried about the stability of the status quo. It will languish for decades, then break out when the world is at a major pivot point, as it is now. READ MORE

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4.15.24 - 'Opportunity of a lifetime' for gold and silver

Gold last traded at $2,385 an ounce. Silver at $28.93 an ounce.

EDITOR'S NOTE: Gold and silver have been in the headlines recently, but many people interested in precious metals fear they have already been priced out. According to MarketWatch, the perfect time to buy may just be this week. We are encouraging our clients to continue adding to their holdings as prices find their footing. Many experts are still calling for a gold price of $3000/oz by Q4.

Iran, Israel developments could lead to the 'opportunity of a lifetime' for gold and silver -MarketWatch

By Myra P. Saefong

The opportunity for investors to buy gold and silver at cheaper prices may unfold this week, an analyst said following Iran's drone and missile attacks on Israel over the weekend.

The escalation of unprecedented tension between Iran and Israel is going to "show up in the markets as fear," said Peter Spina, founder and president of investor websites GoldSeek.com and SilverSeek.com.

If there is a major financial market selloff -- "a liquidity event", there could be some spillover into precious metals, he said. A selloff in the stock market can, as it has in the past, lead investors to seek out ways to cover their losses, including a sale of their precious-metals holdings.

"This could be a buying opportunity of a lifetime for precious metals," said Spina. "The gold price is reflecting all sorts of problems, risks, and now the fear-war premium will likely be added should there be no quick de-escalation to these very serious events in the Middle East." READ MORE

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4.12.24 - JP Morgan Issues Major US Financial Warning

Gold last traded at $2,342 an ounce. Silver at $27.95 an ounce.

EDITOR'S NOTE: In a time when most families are struggling to get by, many are hoping for some financial relief on the horizon. According to Jamie Dimon, the only thing on the horizon is more pressure on our US economy, and the dollar, from abroad.

BRICS: JP Morgan Issues Major US Financial Warning -Watcher.Guru

by Vinod Dsouza

Leading investment bank JP Morgan has issued a major financial warning that could affect the US economy this year. The CEO Jamie Dimon told investors on Monday that he believes the US economy will be affected by forces from outside of America. The JP Morgan CEO explained that he worries about geopolitical events including the Russia-Ukraine war, the Israel-Palestine conflict, and the BRICS de-dollarization agenda to create an economic risk on the US markets.

“These significant and somewhat unprecedented forces cause us to remain cautious,” said JP Morgan CEO Dimon.

Dimon stressed that America’s global leadership is being challenged by developing countries including the SCO bloc, ASEAN group, and BRICS. The CEO of JP Morgan said that while BRICS and other countries are looking to uproot the US dollar, the polarized electorate in America is causing further division. He called the development a “great crisis” that threatens free Western enterprises.

The comments from Dimon were made in the Annual Shareholder Letter this year. “America’s global leadership role is being challenged outside by other nations and inside by our polarized electorate,” he said. The JP Morgan head hinted that BRICS will not be the only alliance that kick-starts the de-dollarization agenda. He urged that the US must put aside all differences and work closely with developing countries. READ MORE

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4.11.24 - Bank Of America Sees Gold At $3,000

Gold last traded at $2,373 an ounce. Silver at $28.45 an ounce.

EDITOR'S NOTE: Another day, another headline highlighting gold. Bank of America has jumped on the $3,000-an-ounce-gold bandwagon. Simply put, with gold trading at $2,350 today, and the number of predictions saying $3,000 gold is coming, don't wait any longer to buy! Call us at 800-289-2646 and one of our representatives can walk you through how easy it is to get physical gold in your portfolio.

Bank Of America Sees Gold At $3,000, Warns Of A Copper Supply Crisis: Metals 'Dance To Their Own Tune' -Business Insider

Gold prices are projected to jump to $3,000 per ounce by 2025, according to Bank of America, buoyed by strong demand from central banks and the anticipation of investors returning to the market once the Federal Reserve begins to slash interest rates.

Michael Widmer, the bank’s commodity strategist, highlighted gold’s resilience as central banks tighten monetary policies.

“Gold prices have been remarkably resilient in recent months, notwithstanding central banks around the world tightening monetary policy,” said Widmer.

The Chinese central bank, in particular, has played a significant role in supporting the gold market, amassing over $200 tonnes of the yellow metal in 2023 alone. This elevated buying also depends on the heightened activity in China’s retail sector, with jewelry sales and non-monetary gold imports “hitting record highs earlier this year.”

“If the Fed ultimately starts cutting rates, investors should return to the market, also offsetting potentially lower Chinese investment demand as sentiment there improves and the economy accelerates. We had previously proposed a US$2,400/oz price estimate if the Fed cut rates in 1Q24; we now raise that and see gold rallying to US$3,000/oz by 2025,” Widmer affirmed. READ MORE

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